"The First Amendment says nothing about a right not to be offended. The risk of finding someone else's speech offensive is the price each of us pays for our own free speech. Free people don't run to court -- or to the principal -- when they encounter a message they don't like. They answer it with one of their own." --Jeff Jacoby

Friday, February 13, 2004

Cloning. Yes or no?:

I'm not going to write some crazy article on why cloning is ethical or not. There is no reason to. Many other people are doing it.

So to the above question, yes. We have everything to gain scientifically through stem cell research and cloning. Imagine the lives we could save. Millions of lives. Imagine the progress we can make with Human health and understanding of the human body. All of this is made possible through cloning.

Lets leave the issue of "playing god" aside.That is completely rediculous. Compare it to gay people and gay marriage. Are we not playing god by "allowing" gays to marry, or allowing gays to exist in our society? I think not. Is there some kind of benefit for all of humanity that comes from gay marriage? No. IMO the whole "playing god" argument is played out and moot.

Thursday, February 12, 2004

U.S. Soldier Charged in Al Qaeda Sting.

Yahoo! News - U.S. Soldier Charged in Al Qaeda Sting: "A U.S. National Guardsman in Washington state has been charged with trying to pass military secrets to the militant group al Qaeda after being caught in a sting operation, military officials said on Thursday. "

This guy is in for a world of hurt, misery, pain, embarassment, and probably ultimately some form violent death in prison. Not surprisingly, he's a muslim convert with ill-placed allegiance. I guess it wasn't enough to feel belonging with the greatest country in the world. The brotherhood and friendships he gained through the military must not have been enough for him either. Maybe greed and monetary gain overwhelmed his concience? Maybe he misinterpreted his new god's messages? Maybe he was angry with his commanders or someoneon in his unit and he's going to show them what's up? It doesn't matter. He's fucked.

As a side note, I routinely avoid cussing on my blog, even though I cuss frequently in "real life" I don't think everyone can appreciate the language as much as myself. So I refrain. However, I believe that traitors deserve death, and I could not resist such harsh language. If I met this man on the street I would not think twice about beating the bejesus out of him.

Once again if you read or believe liberal media you would think that everyone in the US military is sad and upset with being deployed over and over. You'd think they were all about to desert. Guess what! Not true. Very not true.

Maariv International: "The greatest danger facing Israel is not the Palestinians or Hezbollah, but our own apathy and indifference. Acceptance of the unacceptable is a death sentence to democracy."

I'd like to apply that sentence to proposed American apathy to the rest of the world. Ignoring world affairs and in fact ignoring turmoil at home (ie: liberal assualt on freedom of speech, right to bare arms, conservative attacks on abortion, and the disintegration of morals ie: gay marriage, superbowl boobies, language decay, cultural decay and more) will bring about the downfall of our own democracy.

Maariv International: "The German daily Die Welt reports that the European Commission's Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has concluded that tens of millions of dollars in humanitarian aid, donated by the EU to the PA has been utilized for terrorist operations against Israel. "

Liberals would have us believe that the Israelis are murdering and oppressing Palestinians. I can't wait to see what kind of response they have to this.

"Mr. President, in less than three centuries, America has become the beacon of hope and support for people worldwide seeking freedom and democracy."

Shall I go on? ok I will.

"We believe that as with the American defeat of Nazism, Communism, Baathism and Talibanism, America will help to defeat the Islamic Fascists who have no place in a civilized world. Peace, democracy, true freedom, and equitable opportunities and living conditions for all Iranians and Middle Easterners, in general, can be attained, through total defeat of the of Islamic Fascism in Iran. "

Still believe America is doing the wrong thing and getting involved where we are not welcome?

"Sir, the oppressed people of Iran have been mislead by the Islamic Fascists, brutalized by their fanatic mercenaries, manipulated by their so-called reformists, and mentally and physically coerced to tolerate their illegitimate rule for the last 25 years.."

And my favorite part, that the Iranians can apparently see clearly but (dary I say) ignorant Americans cannot

"Mr. President, now, more than ever, the vast majority of Iranian men and women believe that the Islamic Republic is, without question, an evil regime that must be forced into abandoning their power. To this end, Iranians seek a national referendum, under the auspices of the UN and the U.S., that will permit them to vote for self-determination as a true democratic and secular state. We are sure that with your help, Iran can quickly, and somewhat bloodlessly, attain the aforementioned goals that will result in our contributing, as a nation, to world peace and prosperity."

"So in 1971 Kerry's view was that American servicemen in Vietnam were murderers. In 1992, they were no better or worse than anyone else. Today he proudly claims the mantle of war hero."

Check out what the tehran times has to say in response to an email from Kerry's group:

"The office of Senator John Kerry, the frontrunner in the Democratic presidential primary in the U.S., sent the Mehr News Agency an e-email saying that Kerry will try to repair the damage done by the incumbent president if he wins the election."

One of my favorites:

Kerry - "The United States is still reacting in very much the 1945 mood and postwar cold-war period when we reacted to the forces which were at work in World War II and came out of it with this paranoia about the Russians and how the world was going to be divided up between the super powers. . . ."

So I guess when Russia took over East Germany that was just paranoia? How about when they backed North Korea and North Vietnam. How about the cold war? Did he forget about that too? Crap I'm not even old enough to have been through all of that but it's right there in History, he lived through this stuff with a very very warped perspective. The perspective of an altruistic American that believes the world's logic follows the same path as his own.

People like him believe that Communism poses no threat to the U.S or it's "interests" so long as it's not on American soil? They do not see or choose not to see the big picture. The big picture is world economy and balance of power. Damn.

Jane Fonda defends Kerry: "'And they're also saying this organization, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, was a Communist organization. This was an organization of men who risked their lives in Vietnam, who consider themselves totally patriotic. And anyone who slams that organization and slams Kerry for being a part of it is doing an injustice to veterans."

Big surprise. She even called him a hero. I don't know whethere to laugh or cry. I personally would go so far as to call the VVAW "communist", but there is no doubt in my mind that it helped the communist north win the war against the non-communist south (who btw was an ALLY of the U.S).

"The North Vietnamese general in charge of the military campaign that finally drove the U.S. out of South Vietnam in 1975 credited a group led by Democratic presidential front-runner John Kerry with helping him achieve victory.

In his 1985 memoir about the war, Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap wrote that if it weren't for organizations like Kerry's Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Hanoi would have surrendered to the U.S."

Wednesday, February 11, 2004

"Last year appears to have marked a transition from an extended period of subpar economic performance to one of more vigorous expansion," Greenspan told the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee. "Looking forward, the odds of sustained robust growth are good, although as always, risks remain."

Do you remember how you felt on Sept. 12, 2001? Do you remember the incredible sense of shock, sadness, anger and pride, all welling up into a consuming sense of urgency? That's how I still feel every day.

The average American does not understand the absolute hatred and prejudiced that a islamic militant feels for the west and more specifically the U.S. Their reasons are not based solely on our actions in the middle east. It is in fact because the "western" world is not muslim. It is because we do not share the same beliefs as them. It is because we would see a free world, and they would not. Understand that their hatred consumes them. Their biggest hope and their dying wish is to kill as man Americans as possible before they themselves die. Understand that. Really really understand what that means to YOU as an American citizen. Understand that you cannot reason with someone that wants to kill you just for being FREE.

Like most of us, President Bush doesn't have the facility for perfectly expressing his situation in conversation. But if he did, he might have said something like this to Tim Russert in the interview broadcast Sunday:

"I look around and observe that many of my fellow Americans don't seem to be living on Sept. 12, the way I am. And if they don't feel in their bones the presence of war, I don't know what argument I can use to persuade them.

I look on the Democratic side and see that primary voters last Tuesday ranked terrorism last on their issues of concern. I see John Kerry accusing me of stoking a "culture of fear." On the Republican side, I notice conservatives are panicked and peevish toward me over spending and immigration. They seem to think my administration exists to reduce the size of government.

But they should understand that no issue matters to me deeply unless it touches my faith in God. I did not campaign as a government-cutter, and I do not feel called upon to become one. I do feel called upon to use American power to help create a free-er world.

I could lose this election. I don't know whether the American people are with me or not. But I know our hair-trigger reputation has jolted dictators in Libya, North Korea and elsewhere. I know that if in 20 years Iraq is free and the Arab world is progressing toward normalcy, no one will doubt that I did the right thing"

Tuesday, February 10, 2004

Ugh. Kerry, how could you?

Even if (and this is a big IF) GWB did't show up for Guard duty, how can you even begin to compare? Kerry, you disgust me.

John Kerry's War Record: "When Mr. Kerry pontificated at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Veterans Day, a group of veterans turned their backs on him and walked away. They remembered Mr. Kerry as the antiwar activist who testified before Congress during the war, accusing veterans of being war criminals. The dust jacket of Mr. Kerry's pro-Hanoi book, 'The New Soldier,' features a photograph of his ragged band of radicals mocking the US Marine Corps Memorial, which depicts the flag-raising on Iwo Jima, with an upside-down American flag.

Retired Gen. George S. Patton III charged that Mr. Kerry's actions as an antiwar activist had 'given aid and comfort to the enemy,' as had the actions of Ramsey Clark and Jane Fonda. Also, Mr. Kerry lied when he threw what he claimed were his war medals over the White House fence; he later admitted they weren't his. Now they are displayed on his office wall.

Long after he changed sides in congressional hearings, Mr. Kerry lobbied for renewed trade relations with Hanoi. At the same time, his cousin C. Stewart Forbes, chief executive for Colliers International, assisted in brokering a $905 million deal to develop a deep-sea port at Vung Tau, Vietnam - an odd coincidence. "

These days, a small but determined minority of France's Muslims has begun to make demands that clash vividly with that ideal [of secularism]. . . . Some teachers complain that hostility from Muslim students toward Israel has made it impossible to teach about the Holocaust.

Today, via Haaretz, from Sweden:

The report sparked numerous responses in the Swedish media, mainly about interviews that Tossavainen conducted with about 20 school teachers in Stockholm, Malmo and Goteborg. Most interviewees complained that they met opposition from some of their Muslim students when they tried to give lessons about Jewish [history] or the Holocaust. "The teachers said that they had the impression that the children had absorbed their negative opinions of Jews at home, from other family members, or from watching Muslim media," says Tossavainen.

This is what I think the people at home don't understand about Iraq. I was watching the Daily Show last night and John Stewart was mocking President Bush because of the question "Do you think the United States is Welcome in Iraq". The president replied with a short laugh "yes, I think we are welcomed in Iraq". The answer really isn't so simple but who cares. The fact is that there are so many different things happening in Iraq right now. So, yes there are people in Iraq that welcome the U.S. There are also forces operating against the U.S and the local police and even the civilian population. U.S civilians dont' get it.. They don't understand what it's like to re-build a country. They don't understand how enemy forces can create chaos and confusion. They don't understand that there are anti-U.S operatives in "civilian" crowds. They don't understand that "civilian protests" aren't always that.. they are ambushes waiting to happen.

So there are just a few weeks remaining before I ship out. I have no second thoughts. I feel like this chapter of my life is in fast forward. Try compacting 6 months of your life into 4 weeks and you will begin to understand how I feel. I'm completely changing tracks. It's hard to kill all your forward momentum and change directions. Don't mistake this as a complaint. I'm extremely excited and looking forward to my new life. Sometimes I think that I should have joined up when I was 18. I would be a pilot already. Regret and dismay try to squeeze their way into my psyche but I usually kick their ass right back out. I know that now I am prepared for this new journey.

SoA
Blog: "It was a beautiful thing ... on Wednesday about 40 volunteers from all parts of Southern California and over 50 Marines worked side by side to prepare for shipment the goods Spirit of America had donated for the Marines coming deployment to Iraq. The items will be given to Iraqis as gifts of friendship from the American people. The goal is to help the Iraqi people and to build better relations between Americans and Iraqis."

The results of many people making small donations. We are proud to say we donated!

Yahoo! News - : "'These records clearly document the president fulfilling his duties,' White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, seeking to put an end to a controversy that has sidetracked the Bush team as his reelection effort gathers steam. "

Take that you bitches. I never understood why serving with the National Guard was considered shirking responsibility and avoiding the war. As a side note, I'm not surprised anyone wanted to avoid that war... moving on. Here are the total numbers of Guardsmen that served in Vietnam. Not as much as active army of course.

Also, everyone who joins the military understands the fact that they will someday be called to fight for the USA. Except for Clinton era reservists. Laff. I'm not an expert on GWB history but the guy did request service in Vietnam but was denied. So why do drudge diggers constantly claim he was AWOL and tried to avoid the war?

Monday, February 09, 2004

For the record, I understand that people do things in the past that they may regret. They change over time , sometimes becoming better people , sometimes staying exactly the same.

Normally I wouldn't pull things out of the past if they are more than 5 years old, however in Kerry's case (and in many others) their past actions are the same as their current actions. It becomes the only reasonable way to judge their character and predict what type of person they will become.

Kerry is not a leader. I won't go into all the reasons why I believe this (beginning with his service in Vietnam). This is not the face of America that I want to be presented to other countries. Being the sole superpower we need to be strong and strict with a steady leader that sticks to his guns. We can use 1991 Gulf War and the following 12 years as a great example. Countries (including "allies" of the USA) repeatedly and intentionally violated the embargo that was placed on Iraq. They knew they could get away with it because our leadership was soft. When we entered somalia and suffered a defeat Clinton immediately pulled out, leaving a rift that warlords were more than happy to repair. Once again illustrating that our leadership was soft.

I believe that future leaders of our country should not base a large portion of their campaign on bashing the current leader of our country. I think it's immature, childish and downright disrespectful. It's not a good example to set for the rest of the citizens of the country either.

I also believe that using buzzwords and making empty promises is not the way to become the leader of a country. Trying to appeal to certain groups, civil activists and what not may seem like a great way to get votes but that;s not what this country needs as a leader. Hitler was voted into office the same way. Making empty promises and posing with families. Sure he's an extreme, but he's a great example of someone manipulating the public.

I believe that if you have plans or ideas that can better our country and improve relationships with other countries or even change the world and make it a better place, fine! Present these ideas in a mature and professional manner. Explain to us why your ideas will work and why you think we should vote for you or adapt your ideas.. stick by your ideas and appreciate the fact that you are allowed to have them.

MSNBC - Kerry's 19 years in Senate invite scrutiny: "Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) never fails to win applause on the campaign trail when he tells audiences, 'I know something about aircraft carriers for real.' It is a mocking reference to President Bush's 'mission accomplished' carrier landing last spring and a reminder that Kerry was a decorated naval officer in Vietnam."

Maybe I'm confused, but I do recall that Bush was a fighter pilot. I also know that it takes lots and lots and lots of time and experience to land on a carrier. Which probably means that Bush has landed on carriers before...That is NOT an easy task. Also, it was a great moral booster for troops and especially soldiers on the carrier that Bush landed on.

Just for the record Kerry came home and bashed and protested the war and our leadership at that time as well. He also threw his medals (or soomeone elses) over the white house fence. As if they were meaningless pieces of metal. If they were someone elses (he doesn't know) why does he feel it proper to trash a soldier's military accomplisments?

Why does this guy insist on bashing the current LEADER of our country? Why can't he just run his campaign and talk about why he will be a good leader for our country? What a fgn moron. I'd pay good money to see Kerry try to land on a carrier within the next 6 months.

"denouncing President Ronald Reagan's military buildup and calling for cuts of about $50 billion in the Pentagon budget, including the cancellation of a long list of weapons systems, from the B-1 bomber to the Patriot antimissile system to F-14A, F-14D and F-15 fighter jets...

Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) never fails to win applause on the campaign trail when he tells audiences, "I know something about aircraft carriers for real." It is a mocking reference to President Bush's "mission accomplished" carrier landing last spring and a reminder that Kerry was a decorated naval officer in Vietnam.

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But 20 years ago, in his first Senate campaign, Kerry talked a different language about national defense, denouncing President Ronald Reagan's military buildup and calling for cuts of about $50 billion in the Pentagon budget, including the cancellation of a long list of weapons systems, from the B-1 bomber to the Patriot antimissile system to F-14A, F-14D and F-15 fighter jets.

As Kerry campaigns to lock up the Democratic presidential nomination, the battle to define him for a possible general election campaign against the president already has begun. The Kerry campaign and his opponents are mining his record -- from his service in Vietnam, to his antiwar activities when he returned, to his positions as candidate and legislator -- for ammunition.

Long paper trail
Kerry's 19-year record in the Senate includes thousands of votes, floor statements and debates, committee hearings and news conferences. That long paper trail shows that, on most issues, Kerry built a solidly liberal record, including support for abortion rights, gun control and environmental protection, and opposition to costly weapons programs, tax cuts for wealthy Americans and a 1996 federal law designed to discourage same-sex marriages.

But there are exceptions to that generally liberal voting record. Kerry voted for the welfare overhaul bill in 1996 that President Bill Clinton signed over the vociferous opposition of the party's liberal wing; supported free-trade pacts, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement that organized labor opposed; backed deficit-reduction efforts in the mid-1980s, which many other Democrats opposed; and was distinctly cool toward Clinton's health care proposal, which died after being pilloried as the embodiment of big government.

Kerry advisers see a record that demonstrates expertise with domestic and foreign policy issues, a depth of experience on national security -- in and out of the Senate -- that equips him to become commander in chief without on-the-job training and an acquaintance with world leaders that would give him instant credibility as president. In short, they see a record that matches up well against the sitting president, who intends to make the war on terrorism a central campaign issue.

His opponents see a record that leaves Kerry far more vulnerable. Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie, in a Jan. 29 speech, accused Kerry of being soft on defense, out of the mainstream on social issues and an heir to the liberal tradition of Massachusetts Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and 1988 Democratic nominee Michael S. Dukakis. Kerry's record, Gillespie charged, "is one of advocating policies that would weaken our national security."

Kerry has walked away from some of his 1984 campaign proposals to cancel weapons systems that have become central to the U.S. military arsenal unleashed on Afghanistan and Iraq while defending his overall record as a senator. Kerry told the Boston Globe earlier this year some of the proposed cancellations were "ill-advised" and "stupid," blaming his inexperience as a candidate and a campaign that drove him to the left politically.

Views 'evolved'
Stephanie Cutter, Kerry's communications director, said in an e-mail response to questions about Kerry's record that the senator's views on weapons programs "evolved" once he was in office and that he used his votes to voice opposition to a defense budget he thought was "explosive and irresponsible" during Reagan's presidency. She said Kerry has supported "responsible and appropriate" requests for defense spending, including major increases under Bush.

Kerry also proposed cuts in funding for the CIA during the 1990s but now advocates a more robust intelligence operation"

That's right. NOW he sees why we need DEFENSE spending. Tard. I don't think the problem is that this guy is almost as wishy washy as Clark. I think the problem is that he doesn't have the vision for leadership. He doesn't have the foresight on the followthrough thought process that we need as the leader of the sole remaining superpower in the world.

"In his 1991 floor speech, Kerry accused President George H.W. Bush of engaging in a "rush to war" -- language similar to that he used in criticizing the current president on the eve of the Iraq war a year ago. Kerry argued in 1991 that there was no need to pass the resolution to send a message threatening force against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, although that was his justification for supporting the 2002 resolution.

Before and after last year's war on Iraq, Kerry criticized the president for failing to assemble the kind of coalition Bush's father put together in 1991. But in his 1991 floor statement, Kerry was dismissive of the elder Bush's coalition."

So, Kerry.. which is it? Do you support kicking Saddam's ass or not? You didn't support the coalition before, but now you criticize us for not having the type of coalition we had in the past?

"You can't rely on a madman — and he was a madman — to make rational decisions with regard to war and peace," Bush said. "I'm dealing with a world in which we have been struck by terrorists with airplanes. The most solemn responsibility of any president is to keep this country safe. The man was a threat. And we dealt with him."

The president also said during his hour on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he won't alter his positions or his direct approach, despite what host Tim Russert called a growing number of independent voters shown by exit polling after Democratic primaries to be "angry" with Bush.

"I'm not going to change. I'm not going to change my view because of polls. That's not my nature," Bush said.

Berkeley Daily Planet: "Should Jefferson go, he would be the latest in a steady stream of dead white males given the heave-ho from Berkeley schools. Shortly after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., James Garfield Middle School was renamed in his honor. Abraham Lincoln Elementary became Malcolm X under a groundswell of community support, and just four years ago Christopher Columbus Elementary was rebuilt and renamed after Rosa Parks."

This is madness. This type of thing MUST STOP, CEASE AND DESIST. Just for the record MLK and MX weren't exactly angels. FG!

military news about Iraq: "Iraqi investigators, going through tons of documents captured when Saddam's government fell, are finding detailed evidence of how the Baath Party looted the country's wealth during the 1990s. Hundreds of foreign firms participated in breaking the UN embargo, and paid kickbacks to Saddam and his cronies to make those sales. The kickbacks were paid into foreign bank accounts, where the money was used to buy luxury goods and weapons. Unfortunately, the culture of kickback, bribery and illegal deals still exists in Iraq. There are too few people willing to do what's best for Iraq as a whole, and too many who put family, clan and tribe first"

The last sentence reminds me alot of the new and highly contagious attitude in the U.S.A. Everyone is out for themselves, or their party affiliations or they just don't care.

"February 9, 2004: The war between hostile Iraqis and American troops goes on in ways that are little reported. For example, every attack on American troops is carefully studied and US tactics and procedures modified if it appears that there was a change that could have prevented the attack. For example, when American troops discovered that Iraqis were using radio controlled cars to detonate road side bombs, the lead vehicle in convoys carried a controller for such toys that was continuously broadcasting (all of the these radio controlled toys use the same frequency.) This would detonate any bombs (using this method) when the lead vehicle was still about a hundred meters away. At the same time, specially built electronic gear is being built that will enable the lead vehicle in a convoy to continually transmit all the known frequencies used to detonate bombs remotely"

Sunday, February 08, 2004

A New Low

So, I can only imagine that the strikers' tactic here is to try to gather sympathy for themselves. They screw themselves and then they want us to back their "struggle". Until tonight, I wouldn't have exactly called myself supportive or critical of their cause. More than anything I would say I was annoyed and frustrated, but mostly apathetic. Again, until tonight. They have stooped to a new low. I am no longer apathetic.

Brandon Henderson is a young guy who is just starting to come up. Self taught, writes his own music, plays the guitar and sings, it's all him. If you like DMB, you will like this kid, he is awesome. Faithless man is in my head all the time, it drives me crazy, but I love it.